Medicine and healthcare
Adult nursing
BSc or BN, approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council
Overview
Adult nursing is a professional degree about caring for adults who are ill, recovering or living with long-term conditions. You learn anatomy, medicines, assessment and how to plan care, and you spend about half the course on placements in hospitals and the community. It is regulated. A general science degree does not register you as a nurse. People choose it because the work is practical and relational: you are with patients for whole shifts, not only for a consultation. Students who enjoy it are organised, calm when a situation changes, and interested in both the science of illness and the everyday support people need.
You want to register as a nurse working with adults.
Children's nursing and mental health nursing are separate approved fields. Medicine is a different profession.
People who want hands-on care and can manage shift work.
What you will study
Universities do not teach the same modules. The lists below are a general shape, not a syllabus.
Year 1
- Foundations of nursing
- Bioscience
- First placements
Year 2
- Acute and long-term care
- Medicines management
- Placements
Year 3
- Complex care
- Leadership
- Final placements
Skills
Useful before you start
- Communication
- Numeracy for medicines
- Reliability
- Science at a practical level
Developed during the degree
- Clinical assessment
- Care planning
- Teamwork
- Safe medicines practice
Teaching and assessment
Teaching often includes Lectures, Simulation, Practice placements.
Assessment often includes Exams, Essays, Practice assessments, Numeracy.
Typical weekly commitment
Estimate. Placement hours are a formal part of nursing degrees and are not optional study.
Entry requirements
Indicative patterns from published UK admissions information. Not an offer. Actual requirements vary by course, university and year. Pearson Edexcel International A Level and Cambridge International A Level are not treated as the same qualification as GCE A level.
Indicative requirements by qualification
The A-level band is the catalogue reference. IB and American lines come from the named university guides under the table. They are not a conversion every university uses, and they are not an offer.
| Qualification | Indicative requirements |
|---|---|
| A Levels | BBC–BBB. No single A-level subject is universal. A science is often useful. Check the university. |
| IB Diploma | No UCL figure is stored for BBC or BBB. The stored UCL table runs from ABB to A*A*A. A required A-level subject must be Higher Level in UCL's rule. Each Higher Level subject in that table is at least 5. UCL equates A* to 7, A to 6 and B to 5. This is one university's table. |
| American curriculum | No Manchester social-sciences AP example is stored for BBC or BBB. Bristol publishes a GPA of 3.2, or 3.4 for competitive courses, and does not use one AP pattern for every degree. |
- University College London: Undergraduate entry requirements. Retrieved 2026-10-14. Not a universal rule.
- University of Manchester, School of Social Sciences: Americas country guide. Retrieved 2026-10-14. Not a universal rule.
- University of Manchester, Civil Engineering: USA country entry requirements. Retrieved 2026-10-14. Not a universal rule.
- University of Bristol: USA international qualifications. Retrieved 2026-10-14. Not a universal rule.
A-level subjects
No single A-level subject is universal. A science is often useful. Check the university.
Often recommended: Biology.
Useful preparation: Psychology, Chemistry, Sociology.
GCSE and IGCSE
English and mathematics are widely required at GCSE or equivalent, often including a science. Confirm the grades with the university. IGCSE is not automatically identical to GCSE.
Published grades vary widely. These bands are a broad pattern, not a offer from one university. Health checks and disclosure rules also apply.
Other ways in
- An NMC-approved degree or degree apprenticeship is the route to registration.
- A foundation year is not automatic entry to the nursing degree.
Admissions tests and extra requirements
No admissions test is stored as usual for this course. A university can still set one for a particular year.
Course costs
For many standard full-time courses in England, the home-fee maximum in 2026 to 2027 is Up to £9,790. This is the maximum standard full-time fee published for approved English providers with a TEF award and an access and participation plan. It is not the fee a named university charges, and it does not decide whether you pay home or international fees.
Clinical, laboratory and studio courses are not given a different home-fee figure here, because the regulated maximum is not the same thing as an international or clinical fee.
International tuition is set by each university and is not stored here. Clinical courses are often much higher than classroom-based courses. A school in Qatar does not decide home-fee status.
Source: Changes to tuition fees: 2026 to 2027 academic year. Retrieved 2026-10-14. Living costs, field trips and professional fees are not included.
Where you could study
UK degrees in this subject are numerous. This page does not list every university, because a list without a checked entry requirement would look more certain than it is.
No individual UK course page is stored yet for this subject. Use the university site.
No overseas course has been checked for this subject yet.
Where could this degree take you?
Nurse
Direct qualifying route
An approved adult nursing degree is a direct route to NMC registration as a nurse.
Explore your pathway
A course sits between school subjects and a career. It does not guarantee either admission or a job.